ION FRASER UNIVERSITY
Spring Semester 2003 ?
EDUC 465 - 4
?
Kirsten Nowak
Children's Literature
?
Office: TBA
Phone: 291-5998
E01.00
?
E-mail: knowak@sfu.ca
Tuesday 16:30-20:20
PREREQUISITE:
60 credit hours.
DESCRIPTION
Children's literature? Children's literature? Children's literature? Is there, in fact, something that can be
legitimately called children's literature? If there is, is it different from other forms of literature and, if so,
why and in what ways? And does it have its own standards and yardstick of excellence?
Why bring literature and children together, anyway? And which books should we bring to which children.
And when? -- is there, for instance, a way of fitting book to child (or child to book) like the glass slipper to
Cinderella. And to what ends? And in what different ways?
These and related questions are surely at the very centre of the educational enterprise, both at home and at
school, from the earliest years of infancy to the last stages of adolescence. And the answers to these
questions speak to our most basic notions of what it is to be human, what it is to be educated. Or, as
Jean-Jacques Rousseau put it in his Confessions: "I do not know how I learned to read. lonly remember my
first books and their effect on me; it is from my earliest reading that I date the unbroken consciousness of
my own existence."
OBJECTIVES
• Get in touch with and reflect on your own stories and story experiences through childhood and
adolescence.
• Ponder whether there is, in fact, something that can legitimately be called children's literature'.
• Learn to survey children's literature through a study of genre; and examine some major genres - e.g., folk
& fairy tale, the picture book, verse & poetry, the novel, etc.
• Learn to look at children's books according to their fit to children's stages and sequences of development.
• Learn to examine children's books through their themes and issues.
• Critically examine why and how children and books should be brought together.
• Learn about story and storytelling.
• Learn about reading and reading aloud.
REQUIREMENTS
The course will comprise a range and variety of learning experiences. These include: individual study,
research, and field-work with children; focussed practice of instructional strategies and procedures, with
peer review and feedback; small group and whole-class discussion, projects, and presentations; lectures,
workshops, and demonstrations.
Course Requirements comprise the following:
• Regular class attendance and participation
• Completion of readings
• Completion of assignments
• Demonstration of competency in the fulfillment of selected assignments.
REQUIRED READINGS
Trelease, J
.
The New Read-Aloud Handbook. Penguin Handbooks, 2001.
Chambers, Aidan. The Reading Environment. Markham, ON: Pembroke Publishers, 1996.
Yolen, Jane. Touch Magic. August House Publisher (2001)
Other readings will be identified and made available at the first class and throughout the course.
Centre for Distance Ecatión
?
Faculty of Education
Simon Fraser University
WMC 1300 ?
291-3524
EDUCATION 465-4
CHILDREN'S LITERATURE
The main purposes of this course are:
1.
To get in touch with and reflect upon your own reading and book experiences
through childhood and adolescence - this reflection will prepare you to think
about other people's ideas and notions on the topic of reading and books for
children.
2.
To introduce you to a small but representative sample of the range of
literature available to children and youth today; to give you an opportunity to
explore and understand this literature - e.g., traditional folk and fairy tales,
picture books, verse & poetry, the novel, etc. - in greater depth; and to reflect
on what makes a good children's book.
3. To critically examine why and how children and books might be brought
together; and to introduce you to ways of bringing children and books
together through such strategies as: reading and reading aloud, and other
simple forms of presenting literature; storytelling, etc.
PREREQUISITE:
60 credit hours.
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Butler, Dorothy.
Cushla and Her Books.
Penguin, 1982.
Chambers, A.
The Reading Environment..
Thimble Press, 1991.
Kennedy, X.J. (ed.) Knock At A Star: A Child's Introduction to Poetry.
Little
Brown, 1999.
Trelease, Jim. The Read-Aloud Handbook. 4th ed.
Penguin, 1995.
Yolen, Jane. Touch Magic: Fantasy, Faerie & Folklore.
Augusta House, 2000.
Ls) :4 (I1'
Zola, Meguido.
By Hook Or By Crook: My Autograph Book.
Tundra, 1987.
PLEASE NOTE: This course is delivered online using a computer conferencing
system called FirstClass Intranet Client. Access to a computer and modem is
required. See page 4 for details.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Presence and Participation online
?
5%
Participation in 6 online conference discussions
?
30%
Completion of 5 papers ?
50%
Final examination ?
15%
Exam Schedule is in Registration Timetable.
02/18/02
Centre for Distance E ucation
?
.
Faculty of Education
Simon Fraser University
wMc 1300
?
291-3524
SUPPLEMENTARY FEES:
Course Materials & Service Fee $30
Deposit for Additional Materials $25
ONLINE COMMUNICATION AND THE FIRST-CLASS SYSTEM:
This course uses FirstClass, an online conferencing system, to communicate
with one another and to submit and receive assignments. Although it may be a
little challenging at first, experience shows that students find this way of learning
and communicating rewarding and convenient.
If past experience is a guide, most of you will really enjoy learning and
conferencing online. It allows you to connect with others. It allows you to read
others' work and to communicate with anyone in the class - with opportunity for
both synchronous and asynchronous conversation and discussion over the
computer.
Online learning is also convenient: unlike students in previous semesters,
you will not have to drive to the university, or mail or fax your assignments. Nor
will you have to experience the delays involved in getting your assignments back
through the mail: you will receive detailed and comprehensive feedback on your
work within 3 —5 days.
The course is designed so that you post one assignment online a week -- for a
total of 6 Postings and follow-ups (online small-group discussions) and 5 more
formal Papers. You are cautioned that this kind of schedule is demanding, and
you should not enrol in this course if you are not prepared for the self-discipline
that such a schedule calls for.
GETTJNG STARTED WITH FIRSTCLASS:
The sooner you get online, the better. You will be assigned to an online tutorial
group soon after you register and you will be required to post a message to your
group
during the first week of the course.
You will be receiving a CD-ROM in
your course materials from the Centre for Distance Education, which has all the
software you will need for this course. On the CD-ROM, you will find explicit
instructions on how to download and install the software on to your computer.
Follow the instructions to the letter. Once you are online, you can start exploring
the system by going to the
Hey! Start Here!
Conference and reading the messages
there as well as in the
Ed 465 Office,
the
Ed 465 Café,
etc.
Don't worry if you have never used an online conferencing system before! The
Teaching & Learning Technologies staff will provide us with technical support. If
you have any questions regarding the FirstClass system, you have a few options:
1.
Consult the "Help" or "Important Information" Conferences on your
FirstClass desktop (assuming you have downloaded and installed the software,
and are online). Often you will find your answers there.
2.
Phone the Teaching & Learning Technologies Team at 604 268-5575 or 1-800-
663-1411 toll-free within BC.
02/18/02
Centre for Distance E ucation ?
Faculty of Education
Simon Fraser University
WMC 1300 ?
291-3524
3. Email Teaching & Learning Technologies for help at: help@firstclass.sfu.ca
QUESTIONS?
If you have any questions about the course in general you are
welcome to contact the course author and supervisor, Professor Meguido Zola:
phone 224-1550 (home) or email zola@sfu.ca
. A website introducing the course can
be found at http://www.sfu.caltlt/courses/educ465/chlit/
02/18/02
Centre for Distance Education
Simon Fraser University, WMC 1300
291-3524 or 1-800-663-1411 (within BC)
Computer Requirements
This course requires active participation over the Internet through conferencing software called
FirstClass.
Students must have access to a computer and the Internet. Students wishing to connect
to the Internet from home computers are responsible for connecting to either SFU or an external
Internet Service Provider (ISP). Information on connecting to SFU through modem dialup lines is
available at the Academic Computing Services (ACS) web site: <http://www.sfu.ca/acs
>. Phone
numbers for ACS are 604-291-3234 (Burnaby) or 604-291-5030 (Harbour Centre).
SFU Students activate your SFU Computing Account online at: <http://my.sfu.ca
>
2. On-campus computer facilities are available. If you are using your own computer,
Minimum
Computer Requirements
are:
Hardware
• Macintosh with System 7.1 or
higher
OR
PC with Windows
95 or later (98, 2000, NT, ME,
etc.)
• 6MBRAM
• 10 MB free disk space
• 28.8 baud modem
• CD-ROM drive
Software & Other
• Internet Connection
• Email (e.g., Eudora, Outlook, Webmail, etc.)
• Internet Browser (e.g. Netscape or Internet
Explorer)
• FirstClass Conferencing
System*(provided
in your
course materials package)
• SFU Computing Account (SFU Students only).
Get it online at <http://my.sfu.ca
>
*Described in course materials package.
General
• Prior computer knowledge is expected (i.e. ability to save files, install programs and
maintain your computer).
• Familiarity with the Internet, email, and related applications is highly recommended.
3.
Please Note:
• Support for general computer problems such as operating system difficulties and hardware
problems is not available.
• If you are having problems getting started with FirstClass, you may drop in to Teaching and
Learning Technologies (WMC 1340) from 9:00
AM to 3:00 PM
during the first week of classes.
Students unable to access the Burnaby campus may call the Centre or email
<help@firstclass.sfu.ca
>
for assistance.
• The subsidized modem hours allotted to students each semester are not normally sufficient to
complete the required course work.
• A voucher system has been implemented to allow students to pay for continued modem
access on 604-291-4721 (after your subsidized access is used up). Vouchers may be
purchased from the campus bookstores and are sold in increments of $20. At 60 cents/hour,
each voucher is good for approximately 33 hours. Instructions are included with the
voucher.
• For complete information on SFU's Modem Access Policy, check the ACS web site above.
•
Out of town students only:
It is recommended that students residing outside the Lower
Mainland contact a local Internet Service Provider (ISP) since using SFU dialup services will
result in additional long-distance charges. Check your local yellow pages under "Internet"
for listings.
For further information about computer requirements or FirstClass, contact Teaching and Learning
Technologies by email at
<help@firstclass.sfu.ca
>
Revised 2/27/02
CRIM 432, EDUC 22:0,230,412,445,446,465,448,485, HUM 102, 230, KIN 111,212, 312, POLl 232, PSYC 201, SA250
